Wexford film fans out in force for Picture House launch

Film fans were out in force for the launch of the 2015/16 season of The Picture House in the Wexford Arts Centre.

Legendary film director John Boorman attended last week's launch to support his friend, Film Critic Philip Molloy, who received a Fellowship from the club on the night.

The Fellowship is an annual award to a Wexford person who has distinguished themselves in the world of film.

Wexford-born Molloy has been Newstalk radio's main movie man since the station started up over a decade ago, featuring every week on The Right Hook with George Hook, while also having his own show, The Picture Show every Saturday evening.

Previously, he was film critic for The Irish Press and The Irish Independent, while also being News Editor to both newspapers.

He also worked as the Irish correspondent of the trade papers Variety and The Hollywood Reporter and has interviewed a host of Hollywood stars throughout his career.

Molloy joins fellow Wexfordians Billy Roche, Gary Lydon, John Paul Kelly and Declan Lowney in the Fellowship of the Wexford Film Society.

Having received his award and spoken about his own career,

Philip was then joined on stage by Boorman, the director of movie classics such as 'Point Blank', 'Hope and Glory' and 'Excalibur' and he regaled the audience with fascinating stories about Brando, Jack Nicholson, Lee Marvin, Richard Burton and Jon Voight.

He was Oscar nominated five times as writer, director and producer and he has won the Best Director award twice at the Cannes Film Festival with 'Leo the Last' (1970) and 'The General' (1998).

He also helmed 'The Emerald Forest', 'The Tailor of Panama' and recently released 'Queen and Country', which along with his 1972 classic 'Deliverance' will be screened in The Picture House season.

The season which kicks off proper on November 3 with 'Wild Tales' from Argentina and continues to the end of March, with films from 13 countries being screened throughout.